CMJ Day 2: Music + Social Change — It’s good for the soul!

Well, we survived our first late night of great music at CMJ Music Marathon. Last night’s highlights included Lucius, Sol Cat, Party Supplies and NONONO. After a large morning coffee and a breakfast sandwich (a perfect NYC breakfast), we hit a few more great panels.

Particularly relevant to us was the “Harnessing the Power of Music for Social Change” panel. It’s an idea core to the work of HeadCount and the work of the panelists was truly inspirational. Here are our takeaways from each:

Mohamed Helmy –MasterPeace:
MasterPeace is a grassroots movement that uses music to inspire peace. With a presence in more than 40 countries around the world, Mohamed showed us a video with a great example of how music can bring us together rather than tear us apart. “Peace starts from within.”

Nusrat Durrani – MTV World:
Nusarat presented us with a new documentary series coming out called Rebel Music, which will be looking into the lives of young people who are using art and music to ignite change in their countries. He inspired us to consider a different narrative of those who live in conflict regions — the narrative of their culture. “Hope is in the story of the youth.”

Yassin Alsalman –The Narcycist:
Yassin is himself an artist using his creativity to inspire change. He taught us that the medium is the message (throwback to my Intro to Marketing class!), but that in today’s world, the medium is us — The People. “Creativity is the ultimate juice for the soul.”

Jeb Gutelius – The Ally Coalition:
I’m sure you’ve heard about our good friends at the Ally Coalition before. Jeb spoke about work we’re very close to — bringing your cause to the fanbase and engaging the audience. Fun. and the Ally Coalition’s work with LGBTQ rights is all about “before you change the laws, you have to change the conversation.”

Now that we’re newly pumped about social goodness and music, we’re off to treat our ears to a few more live shows!

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